TED Talks are a favorite content for travel listening. A presentation by Harold Rheingold on collaboration, commerce, and to a limited extent, the participatory web (titled altered to fit my preferred terminology) is now available. Rheingold has a history of offering some very interesting insights into technology (Tools For Thought, Smart Mobs).
The 20 minute presentation ties together the advance of societies and the tendency to collaborate. A core question is whether or not we can escape the tragedy of the commons. The answer, perhaps, if we communicate to collaborate (I like this phrase – I wonder if it is original).
